The University of Mississippi will require university officials to use discretion when identifying the school as “Ole Miss” because it could be understood as a racist nickname. “UM’s longstanding nickname is beloved by the vast majority of its students and alumni,” says a statement from Ole Miss. “But a few, especially some university faculty, are uncomfortable with it. Some don’t want it used at all and some simply don’t want it used within the academic context.”

<p>JACKSON, Miss. -- A national fraternity group has closed its University of Mississippi chapter after three members were accused of tying a noose around the neck of a statue of the first black student to enroll in the Southern college that was all-white at the time.</p>

OXFORD, Miss. — The FBI on Tuesday was helping investigate who tied a noose around the neck of a University of Mississippi statue of James Meredith, who, in 1962, became the first black student to enroll in the then all-white Southern college. University police on Sunday morning found the rope noose and, on the statue’s face, a pre-2003 Georgia state flag with a Confederate battle symbol, said campus police Chief Calvin Sellers. Two men were seen near the statue early Sunday and investigators were looking at surveillance footage. “It’s a racial hate crime,” Mississippi NAACP president Derrick Johnson said Tuesday...

OK, Hugh Freeze. Time to lead. Lead your football players at Mississippi out of ignorance and into understanding. Lead your young men toward accountability. Show that the remarkably, distressingly resilient track record for intolerance at Ole Miss can be changed for the better. Because if ever a situation cries out for a coach to set the tone of team behavior, and to firmly establish what is acceptable and unacceptable, it's the situation at Ole Miss today. This is no time for soft-peddling it. There is a reputation at stake for a team, a university and a state. [SNIP] Many Christians...

OXFORD, Miss. (FOX13) - If you are looking for a place to smoke on the Ole Miss campus, good luck with that. The new "No Smoking" policy has it covered and is being strictly enforced. Basically the policy reads you can't smoke anywhere on the Ole Miss campus. That includes the interior of all University buildings. As for the property or the grounds, you can't smoke on the sidewalks, parking lots, recreational areas, partially enclosed or open areas such as walkways, breezeways, patios, porches, gazebos, tents and bus shelters. As for University vehicles, you can't smoke in them, you can't...

JACKSON, Miss. — A protest at the University of Mississippi against the re-election of President Barack Obama grew into crowd of about 400 people with shouted racial slurs as rumors of a riot spread on social media. Two people were arrested on minor charges. The university said in a statement Wednesday that the gathering at the student union began late Tuesday night with about 30 to 40 students, but grew within 20 minutes as word spread. Some students chanted political slogans while others used derogatory racial statements and profanity, the statement said.

Just 50 years after ending its notorious segregation policy, Ole Miss finally has a black homecoming queen. The school just crowned Courtney Roxanne Pearson as their queen, with the student receiving the crowning during the halftime ceremonies of the Ole Miss-Auburn football game. “I am still in shock, but I am definitely very excited,” said Pearson.

Ole Miss coach Houston Nutt will not be retained after this season, multiple sources told ESPN.com, and the university will make an announce at a 3 p.m. ET news conference. Nutt Sources also said that athletic director Pete Boone also will not return once the university hires his replacement. It's not clear when that announcement will be made. Nutt, in his fourth season as coach of the Rebels, will coach the remainder of this season. Ole Miss has lost 12 straight Southeastern Conference games dating to last season and is assured of its second straight losing season under Nutt. Coming...

The only thing less exciting than the Ole Miss Rebels this year was their performance on the football field. Ole Miss is recovering from one of its worst seasons in memory. The "Rebel Black Bears" under Houston Nutt have finished another losing season, 4-8. The only title the "Rebel Black Bear" can lay claim to is being the mascot for the worst team in the SEC West. Where to start? Ole Miss lost a humiliating season opener to Jacksonville State at home. The Rebels lost to Vanderbilt and were crushed by the greenest Tennessee team in years. The "Rebel Black...

OXFORD – A black bear is the new on-field mascot for the Ole Miss Rebels, the university announced today. The Rebel Black Bear was the first choice by 62 percent of University of Mississippi stakeholders – students, alumni, faculty, administrators and season-ticket holders – who voted in an online election that ended on Tuesday. The Rebel Land Shark received 56 percent of the vote, and a proposed Hotty Toddy character drew 42 percent of the 13,300 votes cast. The black bear “has a Mississippi connection, is timeless, appeals to children, is unique to the SEC and fits the other characteristics...

OXFORD, Miss. (WTVA) -- A walk-on football player for the University of Mississippi collapsed and died Friday morning during a conditioning workout. 20 year old Bennie F. Abram who transferred to Ole Miss from Itawamba Community College died at Baptist Memorial Hospital in Oxford.

It's always an interesting experience as a Christian critic to attend a film preview in Los Angeles, especially when the film is as enriching and pro-Christian as The Blind Side, which relates the true story of Baltimore Ravens rookie Michael Oher. As a poor teenager living in one of the most dangerous projects of Memphis, Oher's life changes the day Leigh Anne Tuohy (Sandra Bullock) sees him walking on the side of the road at night in the dead of winter in nothing but shorts and a T-shirt. Taking the Good Samaritan example to heart, Bible-believing Leigh Anne brings Michael...

All-American Michael Oher went from the streets as a 15-year-old son of a crack addict to potential NFL Rookie of the Year on the love and dedication of an adoptive family that wouldn’t let him fail. The movie that tells their story hits theaters in time for National Adoption Day—and recognition that about 130,000 Michael Ohers are waiting for a family to adopt them Sean and Leigh Anne Tuohy adopted as a family motto, "To whom much is given, much is required," they had no idea just how much would be required, nor that they were adopting far more than...

JACKSON, Miss. -The University of Mississippi has shortened one of its fight songs to discourage football fans from chanting "the South will rise again" during part of the tune, which critics say is an offensive reminder of the region's intolerant past. However, some fans have continued to recite the chant at the end of the song, "From Dixie With Love," despite the change made last week at the chancellor's request. The Ole Miss band performs the medley before and after games. Earlier this month, the Ole Miss student government passed a resolution suggesting the chant be replaced by the phrase,...

NEW YORK – Ole Miss Athletics announced today an agreement with the TruTV cable network, Union Square Sports and Entertainment and Granada Productions for an authentic television show documenting the 2009 Rebel football training camp entitled "Gridiron U". USSE has been contracted by TruTV to develop the program following the Ole Miss coaches and student-athletes as they prepare for the upcoming season. The audience will gain a glimpse of the on-field and behind-the-scenes action, providing up close and personal insight into the Rebel staff and players. Filming will begin when players report to camp in early August and continue until...

Andy Kennedy, coach of the University of Mississippi's basketball team, said his arrest in Cincinnati would be a "national incident," a police tape shows. The Cincinnati Enquirer said Monday a recently released police cruiser video shows Kennedy telling a Cincinnati police officer during his arrest last year over an alleged assault that the incident would become infamous nationwide. "It's not worth it. Please trust me. Please trust me on this. This is going to be a national incident, sir," Kennedy said during his Dec. 18 arrest. "You think we've never arrested somebody that's made national media? … We deal with...

Ole Miss isn't just the team that handed Florida its only loss. These Rebels are seriously on the rise. Behind Jevan Snead's passing, Dexter McCluster's squirming runs and some big returns by Marshay Green, No. 25 Mississippi overcame an early deficit and beat No. 7 Texas Tech 47-34 Friday in the final Cotton Bowl played in the stadium of the same name. The Red Raiders (11-2) converted a pair of early turnovers into a 14-0 lead, but Snead led the Rebels to touchdowns on their next three drives, followed by a go-ahead field goal shortly before halftime. Once Green returned...

Ghosts from civil rights era are fading away OXFORD -- University of Mississippi Chancellor Robert Khayat is well aware of the significance of the nation's first black presidential nominee, Democrat Barack Obama, arriving this week on the same campus where James Meredith broke the color barrier in 1962. When the international media spotlight returns for the Friday debate, the chancellor knows questions about race will come from the expected 3,000 members of the media. Feeling confident about the work the school has done in recent years, Khayat believes many journalists with opinions of the university forged by the riot...

Ole Miss officials are expected to announce today that Houston Nutt has been hired as the school’s new football coach. Nutt, who resigned as Arkansas’ coach on Monday, had been working on the financial terms of a deal that was said to be worth $1.9 million per year. Georgia Tech was also believed to be seriously interested in Nutt, who went 75-48 in 10 seasons at Arkansas before resigining, citing unrest within the fan base. Ole Miss fired Ed Orgeron on Saturday after three disappointing seasons. Baltimore Ravens offensive coordinator Rick Neuheisel surfaced as a candidate over the weekend before...

A few weeks after Ole Miss brass announced that head coach Ed Orgeron would be back in 2008, the third-year coach was fired Saturday, ESPN.com has learned. The news comes a day after the Rebels lost to archrival Mississippi State 17-14, capping off a winless SEC season for the first time in over two decades. The Rebels dominated much of the game, but momentum swung after Orgeron opted to go for it on a fourth-and-1 at midfield in the fourth quarter leading 14-0. BenJarvus Green-Ellis was stopped and the Bulldogs staged a frantic rally. In three seasons Orgeron's teams won...

Shortly after midnight (early Sunday September 30th) President Kennedy signed orders federalizing the Mississippi National Guard. The talks over some sort of "honorable surrender" by Governor Ross Barnett continued. The hope was for a situation where Barnett and the state troopers would stand aside when confronted by the federal force. This kind of politically beneficial event was achieved next year in 1963 when Alabama Governor George Wallace stood in the door at the University of Alabama in the face of federal orders to admit black students. But for now the move was on and Governor Barnett wanted to look good...

OXFORD, Miss. — One month after leading the Ole Miss women’s basketball team to the Elite Eight for the first time since 1992, coach Carol Ross abruptly resigned Wednesday night. She is expected to make a formal announcement this afternoon at a press conference on campus. Assistant coach Renee Ladner will be introduced as the team’s new head coach, according to a release from the university. Ross, an Ole Miss graduate, spent the past four years coaching the Rebels to a 77-50 overall record. She was Florida’s head coach for 12 years before returning to her alma mater at the...

Olive Branch's Smith charged with possession Ole Miss football commitment Cannon Smith was released from the Collierville Jail on a $7,500 bond Friday morning after being charged Thursday night with speeding and possession of ecstasy. Smith, 19, a senior quarterback at Olive Branch High whose given name is Frederick B. Smith, was driving a 2005 Mercedes late Thursday in Collierville when he was pulled over by police, Collierville Police Chief Larry Goodwin said late Friday night. An 18-year-old male passenger in the car was charged with possession of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia. Goodwin said the passenger was released...

Mississippi judge ignored his heart and relied on the law, denying bond for a Germantown man charged with killing an Ole Miss police officer. Judge Henry Lackey's decision after a three-hour hearing in Lafayette County Circuit Court in Oxford, Miss., on Wednesday leaves Daniel Cummings, 20, in custody for capital murder in the Oct. 21 death of Officer Robert Langley. "If I were to let my emotions and feeling overrule (me), I would grant bond," Lackey said in rendering his decision. "But under the law ... I believe I would be in error." More details emerged during the hearing about...

He's respectful, polite, say friends of suspect Chuck Cummings wants people to know his son, Dan, is polite, respectful and loves Ole Miss, not a 20-year-old who carelessly killed a campus police officer. "We've had an outpouring of support from people who knew Dan as a real polite guy," Cummings said in a telephone interview Friday. "I'm not aware of how he's being talked about. We've been too busy with details to keep up with it." Cummings' comments were the first public statements by the Germantown family since the younger Cummings was charged with capital murder in the Oct. 21...

OXFORD, Miss. -- Ole Miss athletic director Pete Boone announced Monday that the school will retire the late Chucky Mullins' No. 38 football jersey during pregame ceremonies Sept. 3, when the Rebels open the 2006 season against the University of Memphis. "There are only a few people in this world that have the courage and competitive spirit to overcome the unbelievable obstacles Chucky faced," Boone said in announcing the decision to retire No. 38. "His legacy reaches beyond the football field and deserves to be memorialized as such. "It was decided that the ultimate way to honor Chucky Mullins and...

Legendary Ole Miss football coach Johnny Vaught died Friday night in Oxford, Mississippi. He was 96 years old. During his tenure as head football coach at Ole Miss, his teams won six SEC championships, and three national championships.

OXFORD - A statue of James Meredith, the first African-American student at the University of Mississippi, will be the latest addition to a proposed civil rights memorial at Ole Miss. After sharp criticism recently for altering an earlier design, the Ole Miss administration agreed to the change this week as a compromise with student leaders. The memorial is expected to be completed by May. The statue of Meredith, who was admitted to Ole Miss amid riots in 1962, will be sculpted by Oxford artist Robert Moorehead. It's the newest change after Chancellor Robert Khayat faced stern criticism when he rejected...

While Hunter completed two combat tours in Afghanistan as an active duty Marine, Nothstine was deployed to the Al-Anbar province of Iraq in early February 2005. Nothstine joined the 3rd Battalion, 6th Marines, India Company for his deployment in Iraq. As a crew chief on an amphibious assault vehicle, which is used to carry and support the infantry in combat operations through the cities and towns of Al-Anbar Province, he was part of numerous combat operations. Hunter deployed to Iraq in late August for his third military deployment but his first venture to Iraq. He, too, was attached to the...

Two bodies identified in fraternity fire One body yet to be positively identified by Joy Douglas DM Managing Editor August 27, 2004 Two of the students who died in this morning's fire at the Alpha Tau Omega fraternity campus have been officially identified. Jordan Lowell Williams, 20, of Atlanta, and William Townsend, 19, of Clarksdale, perished in the fire that began at the ATO house around 4:30 a.m., according to a statement by Jeff Alford, vice chancellor for university relations, in a press conference at 3 p.m.A third body has not yet been positively identified. Howard Stone, 19, of Martinsville,...

Oxford, MS A fire swept through a fraternity house at the University of Mississippi early Friday and three students were missing, officials said. The three students, members of the Alpha Tau Omega fraternity, were not immediately identified.

Ole Miss salutes soldiers' return from Iraq by Erin M. Smith In the background, the band played "Anchors Away" and "This is My Country," while university officials saluted seven soldiers who recently returned from a tour of duty in Iraq. Dubbed "Operation Homecoming: Back from Iraq," National Guard Sgts. Jimmy Baker of Lafayette County, Jerry Ferguson of Coffeeville, Deborah Mills of Lafayette County, Jerry Skillom of Marks with Spcs. Robert Mister and Adam Peacock were honored with plaques celebrating their service to the country Monday afternoon in the Union. Along with the six National Guard soldiers, who also work for...

<p>Former Gov. Ronnie Musgrove will teach history and political science classes to undergraduate students at the University of Mississippi starting this semester, he told The Associated Press Tuesday.</p>
<p>Minutes after watching his successor take the oath of office, the Democrat said he looks forward to working at his alma mater.</p>

<p>Howard Dean may be making headway on many college campuses, but here at the University of Mississippi he's not turning many heads.</p>
<p>The national media paint Dean as the "Internet candidate"—a new kind of politician who's showing how campaigns of the future will be run. Maybe that's why he's not catching on at Ole Miss. Tradition reigns supreme here. At the football tailgates on Saturday afternoons, girls in cocktail dresses still mingle with boys in linen blazers. Dorms remain strictly gender-segregated (by mandate of state law) and alcohol is forbidden on campus (in theory, if not practice). Our most celebrated alumni are still beauty queens, quarterbacks and, of course, Trent Lott.</p>

<p>LOUISVILLE (AP) — Eli Manning of Mississippi won the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award on Thursday as the nation's top senior quarterback, an honor his brother Peyton received in 1997. Eli Manning has thrown for 3,341 yards and 27 touchdowns this season, leading 17th-ranked Ole Miss to a 9-3 record. Ole Miss will play in the Cotton Bowl for the first time in 42 years.</p>

Ole Miss fans will be able to vote starting Wednesday on a replacement for Colonel Reb, the University of Mississippi's sidelined athletic mascot. School officials have released two designs, tentatively named "Rebel Bruiser" and "Rowdy Rebel." All UM students, faculty, staff, active members of the alumni association, Loyalty Foundation members and season ticket holders may register their preferences in an Ole Miss online poll beginning at 9 a.m. at http://www.olemiss.edu/athletics/poll.html. The poll will remain open through midnight Sunday. The new design will become the Rebels' on-field mascot and will be a registered trademark, used in a variety of formats including...

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) - Colonel Rebel will still get a new look but the makeover is on hold indefinitely, University of Mississippi officials say. Ole Miss officials on Tuesday delayed an online election for students, dues-paying alumni and others to choose a new image for the school's mascot. The athletics committee was "not enthusiastic" about any of the three proposed new looks that were to be put up for a vote, said Jeff Alford, assistant vice chancellor of university relations.The online vote was to have started later this week. Alford said it has been delayed indefinitely.University officials said earlier this...

The University of Mississippi is postponing indefinitely its search for a new mascot, after the leader of the university admitted mishandling the selection of a replacement for Colonel Rebel. "In hindsight, the timing and manner of the announcement added to the frustration," Chancellor Robert Khayat wrote Monday to about 25,000 alumni in a regularly scheduled fall e-mail. "Although we tried to make it clear that the only change was to update the mascot, some people were fearful of a larger plan. These fears were and continue to be unfounded." Ole Miss officials are meeting this week to decide what to...

Colonel Reb situation could have been handled much better Daily Misssissippian Sept. 23, 2003 Chancellor Robert Khayat said the Colonel Reb situation could have been handled much better in an e-mail sent to alumni Monday. In the e-mail Khayat signed, it was twice mentioned that the university "could have handled the matter much better." The fall message, tagged "Time to Move 'Forward Rebels'" in reference to the Ole Miss fight song, said "It is time to put quarrels behind us." The e-mail admitted the "timing and manner of the announcement added to the frustration." Additionally, Khayat said it was time...

As I'm sure has been discussed, the Ole Miss administration has decided to remove our mascot, Colonel Reb, not for offense reasons but for a more athletic mascot. I'm personal friends with our Chancellor Khayat, and he himself told me that it was not a race or offensiveness issue... ha. After explaining to him that an athletic mascot was a joke, he agreed. What we need is support. 94% of the students voted to keep the mascot but to no avail... yet. Please go to www.saveolemiss.com and click on the College Board. This group has power and can be affected....

University of Mississippi students will rally on the Oxford campus Thursday in hopes of saving Colonel Reb as the school's mascot. Organizers of the nonprofit Colonel Reb Foundation say they will call for a campus vote to let students voice opinions on the mascot, which the school has decided to dump. "He's a great mascot. He's the character we all relate to,'' said Ole Miss junior Brian Ferguson, 20, of Memphis, the foundation's chairman. "Colonel Reb is like our old grandfather, or our old uncle.'' The school, however, has no plans to permit a student referendum, officials said. "The decision...

Mascots vanish from Pas, GC sidelines for 2003 08/29/03 By THOMAS WARNER Pascagoula High has decided to go without a costumed mascot this season, while trying to re-evaluate exactly what sort of symbolism the traditional figure should project. Tryouts for the Panther mascot were not a part of last spring's regular cheerleader tryouts and the school is not going to have someone dressed as the Panther during the fall football season. "We are going without one this year and we're concentrating specifically on getting our cheerleaders ready for competition," said longtime PHS cheerleader sponsor Melinda Mitchell. Pascagoula and George...

<p>With the Colonel Rebel sports mascot on its way out at the University of Mississippi, almost 60 designs for a replacement have been submitted in a contest sponsored by Ole Miss.</p>
<p>Among them: A drawing by Peggy King of Taylorsville, who can just see the Ole Miss Pythons putting the squeeze on their opponents.</p>

The Ole Miss Colonel Rebel situation has gone from silly to ridiculous to sublime. Word out of Oxford this week is that the school is holding a nationwide contest to come up with a new Ole Miss mascot for "a figure who demonstrates a fighting spirit, exhibits independence, and challenges the status quo," according to Ole Miss athletic director Pete Boone. Huh? The creator of the winning design will receive a $5,000 cash prize and two South Zone season tickets to all Rebel home football games for three years. I guess that is on top of the $30,000 that was...